Price rises for Siesta Public Beach upgrades

Estimate for expanded parking, improved restrooms and other amenities rises to $27 million

By CARRIE WELLS

A little more than a year ago, the County Commission approved the design for an overhaul of the Siesta Key public beach complex that was expected to cost $20 million.

At the time, even that number was eye-popping. This week, the project cost estimates rose to as much as $27 million.

The beach project plans include expanded parking, nicer restrooms, enhanced concession areas, a 15-foot esplanade walkway that borders the parking lot, a playground, and other enhancements. Though no one visits Siesta Key Beach for the parking lot, the idea is that nicer amenities will be more in line with the beach's No. 1 designation.

Commissioners, who got another cost estimate just a couple months ago of $24 million, have questioned the $27 million total price and are waiting for answers.

County staff in charge of the project were unable to be reached on Friday, and commissioners were unhappy with the answers they got last week, as staff prepared for a public presentation of the park plans on Tuesday.

Commissioner Joe Barbetta said he was not even sure if the $27 million figure was just for construction or if it included design work, which is expected to cost about $2 million alone.

“I think he was just picking those numbers out of the sky,” Barbetta said, referring to the county's chief engineer.

Commissioners have called the cost estimates and designs, which have fluctuated widely since the idea for the project was first approved in 2009, a “moving target.”

Barbetta believes the project has stalled and wants it done quickly while bond interest rates are still low.

The total project could take close to a decade to complete unless the county borrows money to get it done more quickly.

According to expansion plans, renovation of a historic pavilion and concessions will cost $2.8 million, a history wall will cost $75,000, and expanded parking will cost $4.1 million.

Though no one argues that the public beach parking lot, bathrooms and concessions could use some sprucing up, the high cost has become controversial and some worry it has thrown the entire project into jeopardy. Others wonder whether the cost should be that high at all.

“It's getting to be ridiculous,” said Lourdes Ramirez, head of the Council of Neighborhood Associations. “Every time I turn around it gets more expensive. Is the esplanade being paved in gold?”

Only a small portion of the project is currently funded, and finding the money to do the entire thing may be a challenge just as the county grapples with the looming replacement of its emergency communications radio system, estimated to cost $30 million.